Lawn mower drive



July` 14,1953 J. J. WATTS ETAL 2,645,300

LAWN MOWER DRIVE Filed March 15. 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENToRs,

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july 14, `1953 Filed March l5, 1948 J. J. WATTS ET AL LAWN MOWER DRIVE I5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented July 14, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT N OFFICE LAWN MOWER4 DRIVE JohnJrWatts, Kansas City, and Marion'A. Summerour, Lees Summit, Mo.

AppIication March 15, 1948', Serial No. 14,964

(Cl. ISO-376)V ing said motorV with said cutter member; and l means operatively interconnecting said motor with said wheels whereby said mower'is propelled, saidv last named means including clutches of the overrunning type whereby when said mower is Vturned around a corner, the outer drive wheel is allowed to .rotate faster than the inner drive wheel.

Another object is the provision, in a lawn mower ofthe class described having a cutter member operatively connected with and driven by a niotor, of a novel means for breaking the connection between said motor and said cutter member, whereby said motor may be started without load.

A further object is the provision, in a lawn mower having a` base and a cutter member mounted on a shaft carriedl for rotation by said base, of a bevelled drive wheel" mounted on said shaft, a motor mounted on said' base,and abeve elled drive wheel mounted on the shaft ofsaid motor and adapted to` engage said3 first named abevelled drvewheel to drive said cutter member, said last named bevelled' drive wheel having holes formed therethrough and fan blades carried on a face thereof, whereby airis drawn'through said holes to cool said drive wheel'.

Other objects are simplicity and economyof construction, ease and efficiency: of operation, and adjustabilityfor height of cut..

With these objects in view, as wellas other objects which will appear in the` courseof the` specification, reference will 4be had to the.V drawing; wherein:

Figure 1 is a side. elevationA of a lawn mower embodying the present invention with parts broken away.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the lawnmower;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged inverted planview ofthe lawn mower, with parts brokenl away. y

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary section taken on line IV-IV of Fig. 3, withcertain partsileft in elevation.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on line V-V of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is anenlarged fragmentary section taken on line VI-VI.of,Fig. 2,with;parts.broken. away.

2 Fig; 7 is a fragmentary section taken on line VII- VII ofFig. 6;

Fig; 8` is a rear face viewof the motor' drive wheel, being an enlarged.A section taken on line VIII-VIII'of Fig. 4'. Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmentarysection taken on line IX--IX of Fig. 2.

Like reference numerals apply'to similar. parts throughout the several views, and the numeral I0 applies to a planar base `curved at its forward:

and rearward edges, having dependingside walls I2 along its sides adjacent theforward end thereof and a depending wall I4- extending around the rearward portion thereof. A pair of groundengaging wheels I6 are disposed adjacentYV the rearward end of the base on opposite sides thereof, each of said wheels being rigidly fixed on a transverse axle I8 carried for rotation ina `bearing block 20 rigidly fixed to wall I4. Axles 20 are coaxial, and extend inwardly through holes 22 provided in wall I4. A pair of groundengaging wheels 24 are disposed adjacent the'forward endV of thebasev at each side thereof, each of said wheels being rotatably carried cna transverse bolt 25 extending through and xed to the adjacent side wall I2 by means ofnuts` 28. A plurality of vertically spaced apart'holes' 3|] are provided in each side wall I2, into which bolts 26 may be selectively inserted to adjustably raise or lower the forward end of the base relative to the ground". A` handle 32 luy-means of which the mower may be guided manuallyis forked at its lower end and the ends thereof'pivota'lly carried in brackets 34Y fixed' to the upper-surface of' base I0, and extends upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, being provided at its upper end withhand grips 36. The upper portion 38.0f said handlelis fixed to the lower portion by means of clamp 40, and may be detached therefrom forease oif'shippingor storage. Downward pivoting ofithe handle is limited by a leg 42 xed at'its' upper' end to said handle and equipped at its lowerend with a rubber foot 44 adapted to rest on ibase IU'.

A motor 46, which may beH a gasoline engineas shown or an electric motor, is rgidly'mounted on the upper surface ofl base I0 intermediate its ends; the` shaft 48 thereof being disposed longitudinally and in spaced apart relation above base I0,V and extending forwardly and rearwardly' from' said motor. On the forwardly extended end of said shaft is carried a drive wheel 50', lbest shown in Fig..4 said drive wheel comprising a hub 52 adjustably fixed to shaft 48 -by means of set screw 53 and a ring 54 carried on said. hub andmade of.. hard. rubber, compositiononother suitable enclosing sleeve 80.

material, and having its outer edge portion peripherally bevelled at 56. Said ring is firmly secured to said hub by means of clamp plate 58 and screws 60. A plurality of holes 62 are formed through hub 52 parallel to shaft 48, and a plurality of fan blades 64 are formed integrally on the rearward face of said hub, whereby when drive wheel 50 is rotated, said fan blades will draw a current'of air through holes 62 to cool said drive wheel by dispelling the heat generated by said wheel in frictional contact with drive wheel 66 as hereinafter described.

Drive wheel 66, having its outer edge peripher- Y ally bevelled at 68 to engage the bevelled edge 56 10. Said shaft extends downwardly through base I0, being carried for rotational and verti- Since the cutting by blades 86 is performed principally atthe forward portion of the blade orbit, the height of cut Vmay be varied by raising or lowering the forward end of base I as previously described. Y Y

A pulley |06 is rigidly mounted on the rearwardly extended end portion of shaft 48 of motor T46, and in case motor46 is a gasoline engine, a

cal movement in ball bearings l2, which are in turn carried at the upper and lower ends of bearing tube 14. Said bearing tube is provided with an external flange 'i6 rigidly fixed to base Shaft 'l0 is urged` resiliently upwardly to hold drive wheel 66 in operative contact with drive wheel 50 by means of a helical compression spring 18 carried on said shaft, said spring bearing at its lower end against top bearing 'I2 and at its upper end against the lower face of drive wheel 66. Said spring is protected from dirt by an A cutter member 32 is-carried at the lower end of shaft lll, said cutter member comprising a bar 84 rigidly fixed at its midpoint to the lower end of said shaft and extending radially therefrom, and a blade 86 rigidly fixed Vto each end of said bar. Said blades are attached to the bar by means of rivets 88, whereby worn or damaged blades may conveniently be replaced.

It will be noted that the bevelled surface of drive wheel 50 is somewhat narrower than the bevelled face of drive wheel 65, and that by looseningset screw 53 wheel 50 may be moved forwardly or rearwardly to ride higher or lower ondrive wheel 66. In this manner the speed of drive wheel 66 and of the cutter member driven thereby may be adjusted to a certain degree.

As best shown in Figs. 6 and 7, a plunger 85 is carried for free vertical sliding movement in horizontal arm 92 of bracket 94, said bracket being rigidly secured to the upper surface of base |0 adjacent drive wheel 66 and arm 92 thereof extending over the upper face of said drive wheel. Said plunger is rounded at its upper end and has a recess'formed at its lower end to receive a bearing member 96 made of ber or other suitable material, said bearing member to rest in contact with the upper surface Yof drive wheel 66. A cam 98 is oscillatably carried at the upper surface of arm 92 adjacent plunger 90 by means of screw |00, said cam being manually oscillatable by means of a handle |02 fixed thereto. A tapered recess |04 is formed in the lower surface of cam 98, and plunger 90 normally extends upwardly into said recess. Thus when cam 98 is turned by handle |02 through a partial revolution, plunger 90 will be forced downwardly, and said plunger will in turn force drive wheel 66 downwardly against the force of spring 18, thus breaking the connection between said drive wheel and drive Wheel 50, and disconnecting the' cutter member from the motor. This disconnection is ordinarily necessary to allow motor 46 lto be startedrunder no load. Furthermore, plunger S8 will act as a brake for retarding and stoppingthe rotation of drive wheel 66 and cutter'member 82 after they have been lowered by said plunger.

hollow hub |08 suitable for receiving the usual rope starting lanyard may be fixed securely to the rearward face of said pulley as shown. Said pulley is operatively connected by means ofk belt ||0 with a pulley ||2, said pulley being rigidly mounted on a shaft ||4 disposed longitudinally to base |0 and extending through the upper portion of gear box ||6 and supported by bearings Y II8 formed integrally with said gear box. Said gear box is fixed at its top side to a mounting plate |22'disposed just above base I0, and extends downwardly through a hole |20 provided therefor in said base. Said mounting plate is adjustably secured to base |01 by means hereinafter described.

' A worm gear |24 is carried rigidly on shaftY I I4 within gear box H6, and meshes with a pinion |26 fixed on shaft |28, said shaft extending through gear box ||6 transversely to base I0 beneath shaft I I4, and carried for rotation in bearings |30 formed integrally with said gear box. Said shaft extends outwardly from the sides of the gear box, and is coaxial with rear wheel axles I8, the outer ends of said shaft being slightly spaced apart from the inner ends of said. axles. A clutch sleeve |32 is carried for axial sliding movement on each end portion of shaft |28, being restrained from rotation thereon by means of key |34 fixed longitudinally in the surface of said shaft and extending into matching longitudinal groove |36 formed internally in said clutch sleeve. The outer end portion of each of the clutch sleeves extends outwardly past the end of shaft |28 to enclose the inner end portion of the Vadjacent axle I8, and the outer end surface of said clutch sleeve is formed to present jaws |36 adapted to engage jaws |40 of clutch member |42, which isrigidly fixed to axle I8. Each of clutch sleeves |32 is urged outwardly into engagement with the associated clutch member |42 by means of a compression spring M4 carried on shaft |28, said spring bearing at one end-against the clutch sleeve and at its opposite end against gear box H6. Thus motor 46, acting through pulley |06, belt ||0, pulley ||2, shaft II4, worm gear |24, pinion |26, shaft |28, clutch members |32 and |42, and axlesV I8, turns ground engaging wheels IB to propel the mower over the ground.

It is apparent that shaft |28 may be adjusted to accurate coaxial alignment with axles I8, and the tension of belt |0 may be adjusted, by means of a gear box mounting means best shown in Fig. 9. Mounting plate |22, to which gear box I I6 is fixed, overlaps the edges of hole |20 in base |0, through which the gear box depends. A screw |46 extends through loosely fitting holes |48 provided therefor adjacent each Vcorner of plate |22 within the overlapping portions thereof, and is threaded at its lower end into'base I0. A screw |50 is threaded through plate |22 adjacent each of screws |46, and bears at its lower end against the upper surface of base I0.- Thus it is apparent that by selectively loosening and tightening screws |46 and |50, gear box IE6 may be positioned to align shaft |28 with axles |8, and may be rotated slightly around shaft 12s to adjust the tension of beu; llo.

Referring principally to Fig. 5 it will be seen that the clutch operating mechanism includes a pair of substantially horizontal angled operating levers |52 each having a forwardly extending arm |54 and an inwardly extending arm |56. Said operating levers are respectively pivotally supported adjacent the angles thereof at the opposite ends of a support arm i53 fixed to gear box H6 by welding or other suitable means and extending transversely outwardly therefrom, said pivot points being indicated at |66 in Fig. 5. The forwardly extending arm |54 of each operating lever is disposed within a peripheral groove l|62 formed externally in the adjacent clutch sleeve |32, and the inwardly extending arms |56 of said levers terminate in closely spaced apart relation adjacent the longitudinal centerline of the mower. `A rearwardly extending horizontal rod |64 is xed to support arm |56 at said centerline. A sleeve |66 is carried for sliding movement on said rod extending between `the ends of arms |56. Said sleeve is provided with an external shoulder |68 adapted to engage arms |56 to move them rearwardly. Control wire |16 is xed to the rearward end of sleeve |66 and extends rearwardly through wall I4 and through a flexible conduit |12, said conduit being secured at one end to wall I4 by means of bracket |14, and secured at its opposite end to handle 32 by means of bracket |16, in a position conveniently accessible to the operator. The end of wire |10 projecting from the upper end of conduit |12 is provided with a handle |18 byV means of which the wire may be pulled or pushed through the conduit.

When handle |18 is pulled rearwardly, wire |10 pulls sleeve |66 rearwardly on rod |64, and shoulder |68 of said sleeve contacts and moves the inner ends of arms |56 of levers |52 rearwardly, pivoting them at |60. The forward ends of arms |54 of said levers are thus moved inwardly, and force clutch sleeves |32 inwardly on shaft |28 against the pressure of springs |44, thus disengaging said clutch sleeves from clutch v members |42 carried on wheel axles I6 and disconnecting the wheels from the power drive previously described. When handle |18 is pushed forwardly, sleeve |66 will be moved forwardly, and clutch sleeves |32 will be forced outwardly by springs |44 to the engaged position as shown in Fig. 3.

It will be noted that the back faces of the jaws |38 and |46 of clutch members |32 and |42 are inclined so that the clutches are effective to drive wheels |6 in one direction only, that is forwardly, in the manner of a ratchet. The mower may be pushed over the ground faster than shaft |28 is being'driven, clutch members |42 in that case pushing clutch sleeves |32 inwardly on shaft |28 and riding over the jaws |38 thereof. Thus when it is desired to turn the mower in a curve or around a corner, the operator merely swings the mower so that the wheel I6 on the outer side of the curve turns more rapidly than the wheel on the inside of the curve. When the mower is again straightened, both of the clutches will, of course, be engaged by the force of springs |44 to drive both of Wheels I6 at equal speeds.

box H6 and pulley ||'2. VThe function of this wall is to prevent grass and other cuttings from being thrown rearwardly by the blades to foul the wheel driving and clutch mechanism.

Thus it will be seen that such cuttings as are not discharged beneath the lower edgesof walls l2 and |86 will be discharged through port |82,-

being the space between the spaced apart ends of wall |80 and wall l2, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

While a specific embodiment of my invention has been shown and described, it is apparent that many minor variations of construction and design could be made without departingv from the spirit of the invention.

v What we vclaim is: A

ln a lawn mower cf the class described having a base and a motor carried by said base, a pair of transversely spaced apart wheels in axial alignment fixed to axlescarried for rotation by said base, a gear reduction 'unit carried by said base disposed intermediate said wheels and having its outwardly extending output shaft coaxial with saidaxies, means operatively interconnecting said motor with said gear reduction unit, a jawed clutch member carried for longitudinal sliding movement on eachend portion of said output shaft, a jawed clutch member iixed to each of said axles and adapted to be engaged by the adjacent slidable clutch member to drive said wheels, resilient means urging said slidable clutch member outwardly toward the engaged position, a pair of angled levers carried pivotally by said base, one arm oi` each of said levers having abutting connection with one of said sliding clutch members and the opposite arms of said levers being in close juxtaposition, a rod disposed adjacent said last named lever arms in the plane of said levers, a sleeve. carried slidably on said rod and having a shoulder adapted to engage said lever arms, and means for moving said sleeve on said rod, whereby said levers are pivoted to disengage said slidable clutch members from said An arcuate guard wall |80 concentric with cut- 70 ter shaft 10 is fixed to the lower side of base l0 and depends therefrom just forwardly from gear fixed clutch members.

JOHN J. WATTS. MARION A. SUMMEROUR.V

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